Employee Reporting in the U.K.: An Empirical Study of Managerial Objectives and Behaviour

[摘要] Since the 1970's, an increase of interest was shown by researchers in employee reporting, but little empirical attention has been focused on the managerial determinants. This research addresses the need to understand how and why voluntary employee reporting developed, examining its place in the wider organisational and social context. A three-pronged enquiry was carried out in the U.K. during 1981-83, comprising documentary analysis, postal questionnaire survey and personal interviews, to find out managerial objectives and attitudes in employee communications. It traced influences from specific organisational, social and societal factors on employee reporting. Analysis of the qualitative data consistently demonstrated the importance attached by managers to reporting financial information to the employees. Their communication objectives showed a dominant social theme. Employee reporting developments result from strong faith or commitment to communications on the part of management, and their perceptions of specific pressing organisational needs and wider social and moral issues at the time. The study highlights the complexity of managers' perceptions and mixed feelings about the intrinsic value and conflicting social interests in employee information. There remains scope for experimentation on the uses and designs of employee communication systems. This research represents a contribution to the developing interpretive approach in accounting research, and to the debates about corporate accountability to the employees and public policy making.

[发布机构] University:University of Glasgow

[关键词] Management